children of the revolution
by Catherine Antrim
Summary: Love can over come all obstacles... even high school. not your average teen angst fic. please read and review. rating is just to be safe- i usually swear and stuff


Disclaimer- I dont own the moulin rouge, the movie moulin rouge or any of the moulin rouge characters. I dont own anything. I'm going to go cry about it.

I already have a modern day moulin rouge story but this one is different and i hope you enjoy reading cuz I'm really having fun writing it.

Christian Adams stood outside of the foreboding brick high school, his heart beating in his mouth. He clutched his new notebook close to his chest and made is way up the cold concrete steps. Unlike most students who entered this linoleum hell with bright lights, Christian was eager to be there. He had been home schooled by his overly strict father since he was five. He had no friends his age but today was the day he planned to make them.

Christian looked at his schedule in confusion. How many stairs were there in this bloody school? Luckily he was soon tripped by a dwarf. Christian fell, dropping his new notebook and causing paper to spill out all across the floor. The dwarf looked at him. Ok so maybe he wasn't a dwarf, just one of those unfortunate souls entering senior year that still had yet to reach puberty.

"Sorry about that!" He bent over and began helping Christian pick up the papers. "It happens a lot."

"Not a problem." Christian said as he got back up, notebook recovered.

"My name is Henry,"

"Christian," Christian held out his hand. Henry accepted it, surprised to see such a polite gesture in a crowd of savage teenagers.

"You look lost Christian."

"That makes sense, because I am lost, do you know where room 204 is?"

"That's right near my locker! Come on I'll show you." Christian smiled.

"Thank you." Henry glanced at his own schedule.

"Why, I have first period there too!"

Several bodies behind Christian in the crowd of shouting high-schoolers was a slightly less happy face. A thin, pretty girl dragged a faded back pack behind her, showing a complete lack of interest in everything around her. Someone pinched her ass and laughed and Satine rolled her eyes. Nothing had changed this year, why would it?

Inside the building Satine headed up the stairs to the top floor where her locker was. Oh the joys of being a senior, more flights of stairs to walk up. She was shoved in the wall several times by rough housing boys. She'd never understand for the life of her why boys showed affection by hitting each other.

The boy with the locker next to her was checking her out, his eyes bulging. Satine ignored him and continued putting books in her locker. Then she pulled out her make up mirror and inspected her teeth in it. The boy continued to stare. Desperate for him to look away she began picking her nose. He kept looking.

"That's very attractive Strawberry," Satine spun around to see Mr. Zidler leaning against the locker beside hers. Quickly she removed her finger from her nose and put her mirror away. Then Mr. Zidler turned to the boy on the other side of her. "Get your eyes back in, you look like a frog." the boy turned away quickly, and Satine laughed, something she hadn't expected to do all day. Mr. Zidler was one of the strictest teachers in the school, although, in Satine's opinion also one of the best. He taught all forms of music classes as well as running the after school drama department. "So Miss Desmereges, I figure we can count on seeing you at drama club tonight."

"Oui, of course." She picked up her battered text books and put them in her shoulder bag. "Well I better be getting to class. See you tonight Har- Mr. Zidler." They both smiled. Mr. Zidler let them call him Harold in drama club but if the Principle found out she was sure to be furious at the lack of respect the teens showed for their elders.

Satine pulled the slipping strap of her dress up onto her shoulder and several boys whistled. She bit her lip and knew she regretted wearing her sister's slip like white dress. She hadn't done it to attracted attention, but after going to art camp for the summer she had almost forgotten what school was like. She had simply liked the lace trim and the soft fabric, not to mention it was one of the last things she had left that still smelt like her mother.

Satine hesitated before she entered the room, not sure she was ready to face the people she'd worked all summer to forget. Taking a deep breath she dove into the room to find no one even noticed her entrance.

This was the scene that met her eyes: Several girls in brightly colored Abercrombie shirts and blue jeans were gossiping in the front row. A boy, who she vaguely remember was named Matthew was reading a popular science magazine while chewing an eraser. Three boys were tossing a football between them.

They all ignored Satine as she made her way to the back of the room, until one of the boys with the foot ball, Devon Mulligan, shouted at her back.

"Nice dress," The other two boys laughed. The girls in the front giggled cruelly and Matthew waited until the others laughter had subsided to snort into his magazine. Satine said nothing but took a seat in the back, by the window, next to Henry, Audrey and a boy she didn't know. Henry was alright, compared to other boys at her school. He liked theater and had painted a picture of her once. Satine had never much cared for Audrey, she was too self centered to have a normal conversation around although she didn't treat Satine any worse than she treated everyone else.

"So, how was your summer Satine." Satine look up suddenly from her desk and faced Henry.

"Alright, how about yours?"

"Good, I have some new paintings you should see."

"I'd love to!" Satine said honestly. Toulouse was a very good artist. The boy beside Henry had pulled out a faded paper back copy of Romeo and Juliet and was reading it with the cover folded back.

"Oh, Satine, this is Christian Adams, he's new."

"Hi Christian, I'm Satine Desmereges."

"Hello," said Christian, looking up from his book and facing her. He was well dressed, Satine noticed, compared to the other boys in the school. A wrinkle-free t-shirt with something written on it, slightly tight jeans that didn't allow you to see his boxers, and clean, brushed black hair that was slightly too long.

Summing him up she approved of his looks, not too nerdy, not too teenager. Unfortunately, knowing teenagers as she did, any boy who was halfway decent looking was sure to be a complete jerk. He smiled and she smiled back but then their teacher, Miss Brown, entered the room and all chance of conversation ended.

"Good morning, welcome to the first day of what is hopefully your last year of school." she gave Devon's back a piercing glare. Devon spun around to face her.

"Sorry, Ma'am." She raised an eyebrow and continued.

"This class is a creative writing class. I know all of you aren't writers, some of you are here just to fulfill graduation requirements-"

"Too true," sighed Devon.

"But be that as it may, I expect you to work your hardest." then she rambled on about fire exits and school lunches. Satine stacked and re-stacked her pile of text books, doodled on her notebook, played with her hair, anything to relieve her from the mind dulling boredom.

Christian meanwhile was eagerly hanging onto her every word. She said they would work on poetry early in the year and then move on to writing stories later in the year. They would be expected to read their writing to the class. Christian wrote it all down, desperate to do good in this class. As an aspiring song writer, doing well in English was mandatory. When the class was finally over, Christian felt weighed down by the amount of work she had assigned on the very first day, if all of the teachers had them write essays like that he didn't know when he's have time to do anything but homework.

All morning Satine kept her head down through her morning classes- double Biology and Algebra. As usual she had no friends. At lunch she sat alone in the corner and drank a juice. School always took her appetite away. She remembered a time when she had been popular, although even then she hadn't let anyone see the real Satine. When they started high school she had started growing, physically and mentally. Boys became obsessed with her and got mad when she didn't return their feelings girls were jealous of her ability to attract boys. This hadn't bothered Satine, because other things happened that year that made her see how silly teenagers really were.

Christian entered the Lunch room, head spinning. The morning had flown by and he felt quite overwhelmed by all the work he had been given. He followed Henry to the lunch counter where he bought a sandwich and the two of them went to eat outside on the grass of the gym field with some of Henry's friends who he introduced to Christian.

"Christian this is Audrey... you met her today in English...this is Tino-" he indicated at tall Hispanic boy who was sound asleep a few feet away, his head resting on his bag. Tino snorted in response.

"And this is Satie-" he pointed to a thin boy with a shaved head and glasses, dressed in punk style clothes and was strumming a guitar. He looked up when he heard his name and gave Christian a brief nod. Christian began eating his sandwich and was about halfway through it when a very pretty dark haired girl came to join them. She was wearing a tight, exposing black lace tank top, short denim shorts and fishnets. She sat on the ground beside Tino and stroked his hair.

"That's Nini," Toulouse whispered in Christian's ear.

"Wake up Tino, honey." He opened his eyes and smiled at her.

"Hey Neen." he smiled sleepily and kissed her. "What up?"

"Nothing babe, just wondering if you're coming to drama club this afternoon?"

"Yeah, sure. What play are we doing this semester?"

"I talked to Harold this morning and he says we're probably doing another student written one." Tino glanced at Audrey.

"Didn't you write one last year Audrey?" he asked. She nodded, carelessly running her hand through her short black and purple hair.

"Yea, but her highness Satine didn't like it. She said it was because it was too old fashioned but I know it's just that there wasn't a big enough part for her." Nini rolled her eyes.

"Yea, Harold does everything Satine tells him too. He bends to her, that whore." there was a noise of general agreement from the group, from all but Henry who was too nice for such things.

"Well I think you should try and write the play again this year Audrey," said Nini.

"You guys can come over today to work on it with me if you like," said Audrey.

"Tino and I have drama but we'll try to come over after."

"I'll come," said Satie, speaking for the first time.

"Me too," lisped Henry. "Christian?"

"Sure, I love writing!"

"Sounds like a plan," said Nini.

Christian some how made it through the rest of the afternoon. The prospect of hanging out, with friends, was enough to lift his spirits despite the fours papers he had to write.

Satine's leg dangled as she sat perched upon one of the paint stained tables in the art room. Henry was showing her his newest painting; it was of two people drinking at a café.

"I like it," she smiled. "It makes me think of Paris."

"Have you been to Paris, Satine?" asked Henry.

"No, but my mother's from France. Someday I'll go, just you see." Satine leaned back over her own, slightly less satisfactory painting and continued trying to make the rose bud. She'd been working on her painting, off and on, nearly two years. She wanted it to be perfect. It showed a pretty brown haired woman in a garden. Satine had no picture to base it on, only a memory from her childhood. Try as she might she couldn't get the face right. Often in class she'd get frustrated and start new paintings of fruit bowls and golden landscapes she'd never seen.

Satine bit her lip and concentrated, running paint streaked hands through messy red curls absently. Satine had found her afternoon schedule far easier to manage: double French and painting today. She got enough work done on her painting that when she heard the bell ring she was able to leave the class room not feeling like the day had been a complete waste of time.

Heading to her locker she sorted out which books she needed to bring home and tied back her paint streaked hair with elastic. Downstairs several people had already grouped in the auditorium for drama. Nini and her cronies were sitting together, whispering raptly although they stopped suddenly when they saw Satine, so she was sure they're been talking about her.

Christian, Henry, Satie and Audrey piled into Audrey's car. Audrey pressed a heeled foot on the peddle and flew out of the school parking lot. Satie popped a Ramones tape in and started playing air guitar in the front seat. Audrey swung around corners with out slowing down. Christian held on to his seat, like he was on a roller coaster.

"So Audrey, when did you get your license?" Henry asked.

"License? I still have to pass my test... parallel parking my ass." She sulked, pressing particularly hard on the peddle.

Ten windblown minutes later the Christian found himself on Audrey's veranda, eating cookies and listened to Audrey read her play.

"And then the nun said..." Audrey read extravagantly. "And that's where my muse left me for the moment."

"Well, it's a beginning," said Henry.


End file.
